Vancouver Canucks' president Trevor Linden, upper left, walks past players Zac Dalpe, from left, Daniel Sedin, of Sweden, Mike Zalewski and Nicklas Jensen, of Denmark, as he leaves the ice after former president and general manager Pat Quinn was inducted into the team's Ring of Honour before NHL game between the Canucks and Calgary Flames in Vancouver on Sunday April 13, 2014.

Photograph by: Darryl Dyck
, THE CANADIAN PRESS

VANCOUVER — He has never made a trade, drafted a player and still hasn’t fired a coach.

For the 14th straight day since he became the Vancouver Canucks’ president of hockey operations, Trevor Linden did not fire John Tortorella as coach of the National Hockey League team on Wednesday.

People are starting to talk.

Does this mean Tortorella might actually survive the regime change that is following the Canucks’ worst season since the 1990s?

Is owner Francesco Aquilini balking at paying off the last four years and $8 million on Tortorella’s contract, which reportedly does not have a buyout provision similar to one that saved the Canucks some money when they fired general manager Mike Gillis earlier this month?

Did Henrik and Daniel Sedin plead with Linden in their exit meetings last week to spare Tortorella so the leading scorers in franchise history can spend next season collapsing in the defensive zone and blocking shots while killing penalties?

No, it means Linden is taking a measured, sensible approach, trying to gather as much input and intelligence as he can before making his first big decision.

Naturally, he doesn’t want to appear hasty or pre-disposed to firing Tortorella. And there is no pressing deadline to make a decision on who will be coaching the team in September.

But Linden’s fairness may start to look like indecision or, worse, indifference to Tortorella’s right to know his future, if we make it to May without an announcement one way or another on the coaching staff.

Remember, Gillis was accused by some of dithering needlessly when it took him 15 days from the Canucks’ last playoff elimination — oh, how we long for the good old days when the Canucks were eliminated during the Stanley Cup tournament — to do what everyone expected and fire head coach Alain Vigneault.

Whatever his tactical faults, Tortorella coached honestly, held himself accountable and conducted himself with integrity and professionalism for all but one night of the season. Yes, he did fall off the wagon in a big way when he stormed the Calgary Flames’ dressing room on Jan. 18, but that wasn’t the turning point of the season it has been made out to be.

Tortorella doesn’t deserve to flap in the breeze any more than Vigneault did.

WRITERS’ BLOCK: As a member of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association, which votes annually on five major awards and the NHL all-star and all-rookie teams, I believe one of our worst omissions in years was not nominating Minnesota defenceman Jonas Brodin, a 19-year-old who played 23 minutes a game, for the 2013 Calder Trophy.

After a season in which none of the big-name freshman forwards had dazzling numbers, we gave the rookie award to Florida centre Jonathan Huberdeau, a former third-overall pick who had 31 points in 48 games and whose minus-15 rating was tied for worst among forwards on his terrible team.

But say this for the PHWA, at least we’re consistent. Wednesday’s batch of 2014 Calder finalists did not include Winnipeg defenceman Jacob Trouba as our members went as finalists with the three highest-scoring forwards. Tampa’s Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson, and Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon had excellent seasons. MacKinnon, 18, is going to be a superstar and should be the Calder winner in June.

But on defence, a complex and difficult position to learn in the NHL, Trouba logged 22:26 a night for Winnipeg while contributing 29 points in 65 games as a 19-year-old. Johnson and Palat are 23.

Trouba was second on my ballot, behind MacKinnon.

NHL parity goes far beyond the standings. There isn’t nearly the disparity between the best and worst players that existed a generation ago when, for instance, slow defencemen were simply overmatched against quick forwards. And the salary-cap has caused a culture change in hockey as teams are forced to develop and promote younger players. The award voting, too, seems to get more competitive by the season.

FORMAT SUCCESS: Having the freedom to sit in front of the TV and absorb the playoffs’ first round for the first time since 2008, I’m struck by two things: How much better everyone looks than the Canucks, and how the new division-based Stanley Cup tournament format has upped intensity and interest.

The first round, when teams are generally as healthy and hopeful as they’re going to be, has always been good. But series like the Rangers-Philadelphia, Anaheim-Dallas, St. Louis-Chicago and San Jose-Los Angeles are being played with the intensity of Cup finals.

So far, the Sharks have been the best team in the tournament, out-skating and out-muscling a Kings’ team that was supposed to represent the modern playoff template. Which means the Canucks may have a new template to follow.

A FEW GOOD MEN: The Canucks could sure use depth players like Raffi Torres, Dale Weise and Tanner Glass. For a team that’s been trying for years to build an effective, combative fourth line, it’s hard to believe they let those guys go.

A QUESTION OF CANADA: Will British Columbians who aren’t already Habs fans support the Montreal Canadiens as Canada’s team? Probably to the same degree people in Quebec supported the Canucks in 2011.

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Vancouver Canucks' president Trevor Linden, upper left, walks past players Zac Dalpe, from left, Daniel Sedin, of Sweden, Mike Zalewski and Nicklas Jensen, of Denmark, as he leaves the ice after former president and general manager Pat Quinn was inducted into the team's Ring of Honour before NHL game between the Canucks and Calgary Flames in Vancouver on Sunday April 13, 2014.

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